Sport Glove

ABSTRACT

A sport glove is such that a notched portion that also serves as hand insertion portion is provided at a lower portion of the back portion in such fashion as to cover neither the radiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint of the wearer, a tip end portion of a tightenable strap being removably retained at the back portion, and a base end of the tightenable strap being secured to a side end of the pinky finger sheath portion at the palm portion, in such fashion that neither the radiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint is covered by the tightenable strap. Because neither the radiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint—these carrying out flexion and extension and lateral bending of the hand of the wearer—is covered, there is no occurrence of sensation of pressure from the back of the glove to these joints.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a glove for use in golf, baseball, orother such sport.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A conventional sport glove is such that a slit is formed at the back ofthe glove, an opening being provided for insertion of the hand of thewearer of the glove, and such that a tightenable strap is provided forclosing this opening. This tightenable strap is constituted such thatone end thereof is secured to one of the two sides that straddle theaforementioned back slit, and such that the other end thereof isretained by the other of the two sides that straddle the aforementionedback slit. This tightenable strap is such as to permit the glove to betightened about the wrist of the wearer of the glove (hereinafter“wearer”) and prevent the wrist from engaging in excessive movement.

However, because the conventional tightenable strap is divided in two bythe aforementioned slit such that one of the two sides at the back ispulled toward and retained by the other of the two sides, the back ofthe wrist and hand of the wearer are pressed on thereby. For thisreason, there is a deficiency in that there is occurrence of discomfortwhen the hand is flexed or extended, or when it is bent to the side,which makes it impossible for the wearer to skillfully carry out subtlewrist movements such as cocking of the wrist in the context of golf, forexample.

At this point, a brief description of the joints which contribute to themovement that occurs during flexion and extension or during lateralbending of the hand will be given with reference to FIG. 5. Theradiocarpal joint c which is formed between the distal end of the radiusa and the proximal row b of the carpus, and the midcarpal joint e whichis formed by the proximal row b of the carpus and the distal row d ofthe carpus, these being shown in FIG. 5, are the joints which contributeto the movement that occurs during flexion or extension, and to themovement that occurs during lateral bending, of the hand. In thedrawing, f is the ulna. The movement that occurs during flexion andextension or during lateral bending of the hand is primarily madepossible by the aforementioned radiocarpal joint c. The aforementionedmidcarpal joint e cooperates with the aforementioned radiocarpal joint cto permit the movement that occurs during flexion and extension orduring lateral bending of the hand.

While not shown in the drawings, the aforementioned carpus compriseseight bones—i.e., the scaphoid, lunate, triquetrum, pisiform, trapezium,trapezoid, capitate, and hamate—these being located between the fivemetacarpals of the hand and the aforementioned radius a of the forearmand aforementioned ulna f. The aforementioned scaphoid, theaforementioned lunate, and the aforementioned triquetrum make up theproximal row b of the carpus; the aforementioned trapezium, theaforementioned trapezoid, the aforementioned capitate, and theaforementioned hamate make up the distal row d of the carpus.Accordingly, to smoothly carry out subtle wrist movements, it isimportant that no sensation of pressure be conveyed from the back of thehand to the aforementioned two joints, i.e., the radiocarpal joint c andthe midcarpal joint e.

Conventionally proposed as a device to eliminate the aforementioneddeficiencies is a constitution in which a ridge-shaped notched portioncausing part of the wrist of the wearer to be exposed is formed at thelower end at the back side of a golf glove, a rubber strip joined alongthe lower edge at the palm side being joined in such fashion as to bedirected diagonally upward along the aforementioned ridge-shaped notchedportion, a slit being provided from the peak of the aforementionedridge-shaped notched portion in such fashion as to be directed towardthe fingers, one end of a tightenable strap being secured to the edge atone side of this slit, a surface fastener being used to cause the otherend of the tightenable strap to be removably retained at a locationtoward the other end of the aforementioned slit (Japanese Utility ModelApplication Publication Kokoku No. S53[1978]-17892).

Because the aforementioned proposed golf glove is such that a slit isprovided from the peak of a ridge-shaped notched portion in such fashionas to be directed toward the fingers, one end of a tightenable strap issecured to an edge at one side of this slit, and the other end of thetightenable strap is made to adhere in removably attachable fashion to alocation toward the other end of the aforementioned slit, presence ofthe aforementioned slit makes it impossible to increase the area of theridge-shaped notched portion. For this reason, while there is inadequateexposure of the wrist of the wearer and the radiocarpal joint isuncovered, although there is some degree of improvement with respect tothe sensation of pressure on the back of the wrist because the midcarpaljoint is in a covered state, there is a disadvantage in that discomfortstill occurs when the hand is flexed or extended, or when it is bent tothe side, and has yet to be eliminated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a sport glove thateliminates this disadvantage.

To achieve the foregoing object, a sport glove associated with thepresent invention is constituted such that it comprises a back portion;a palm portion; a thumb sheath portion; an index finger sheath portion;a middle finger sheath portion; a ring finger sheath portion; a pinkyfinger sheath portion; and a tightenable strap; wherein a notchedportion that also serves as hand insertion portion is provided at alower portion of the back portion in such fashion as to cover neither aradiocarpal joint nor a midcarpal joint of a wearer; and wherein a tipend portion of the tightenable strap is removably retained at the backportion, and a base end of the tightenable strap is secured to a sideend of the pinky finger sheath portion at the palm portion, in suchfashion that neither the radiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint iscovered by the tightenable strap.

As a result of adoption of such constitution, because neither theradiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint—which cooperates with theradiocarpal joint to carry out flexion and extension and lateral bendingof the hand—will be covered by either the back portion or thetightenable strap when the glove is worn, there will be no occurrence ofsensation of pressure from the back of the glove to either of theaforementioned joints.

Furthermore, to achieve the foregoing object, a sport glove associatedwith the present invention is such that, in the context of the foregoingconstitution, a location of a lower end of the palm portion is made tobe more toward the midcarpal joint than the radiocarpal joint of thewearer of the glove.

As a result of adoption of this constitution, because the portion at theradiocarpal joint, i.e., the wrist, will be exposed at the palm and atthe back of the hand when the glove is worn, there will be absolutely nosensation of pressure on the wrist.

Moreover, to achieve the foregoing object, a sport glove associated withthe present invention is such that, in the context of the foregoingrespective constitutions, the base end of the tightenable strap issecured in such fashion that a lower end thereof coincides with a bottomedge of the palm portion, and such that an upper end thereof is securedto a portion at which the palm portion and the back portion are secured.

As a result of adoption of this constitution, the tightening force fromthe tightenable strap will act efficiently on the palm portion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the context of an embodiment in which the present invention has beenapplied to a golf glove, FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the sidethereof toward the back of the hand in a state that might exist when theglove is being worn.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of same showing the side thereof toward thepalm.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of same showing the side thereof toward theback of the hand in a state that might exist when the tightenable strapis open.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of same showing the side of the glovetoward the sheath for the pinky finger in a state that might exist whenthe glove is not being worn.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing in simplified fashion themidcarpal joint and the radiocarpal joint of the hand.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described below withreference to the attached drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, golf glove 1 is provided with backportion 2 corresponding to the back of the hand of the wearer, palmportion 3 corresponding to the palm of the hand of the wearer, thumbsheath portion 4 within which the thumb of the wearer is inserted, indexfinger sheath portion 5 within which the index finger of the wearer isinserted, middle finger sheath portion 6 within which the middle fingerof the wearer is inserted, ring finger sheath portion 7 within which thering finger of the wearer is inserted, and pinky finger sheath portion 8within which the pinky finger of the wearer is inserted. It is preferredthat the aforementioned respective portions 2 through 8 comprisestretchable material; e.g., natural leather, artificial leather, and/orsynthetic leather.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, notched portion 9, which also serves ashand insertion portion, is provided at the lower portion of back portion2 in such fashion as to cover neither the radiocarpal joint c, i.e., thejoint formed between the radius a and the proximal row b of the carpus(see FIG. 5), nor the midcarpal joint e, i.e., the joint formed betweenthe proximal row b of the carpus and the distal row d of same (see FIG.5), of the wearer. This notched portion 9 is approximately triangular,the top edge thereof being formed so as to extend diagonally upward inapproximately linear fashion so as to be directed toward the side end ofthe pinky finger sheath portion 8 from the side end of thumb sheathportion 4 at the aforementioned back portion 2 in such fashion thatneither the aforementioned radiocarpal joint c nor the aforementionedmidcarpal joint e of the wearer is covered by the aforementioned backportion 2. That is, the back of the hand is exposed at a regioncorresponding to the aforementioned radiocarpal joint c and theaforementioned midcarpal joint e of the wearer.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, at everywhere except the upper endportion thereof, the base end of tightenable strap 10 having a structurecorresponding only to palm portion 3, the upper end portion thereofhaving a structure corresponding to palm portion 3 and back portion 2.As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the base end of the aforementionedtightenable strap 10 is secured in such fashion that the lower endthereof is made to coincide with the lower end of the side end of pinkyfinger sheath portion 8 at palm portion 3, and is joined to theaforementioned palm portion 3 everywhere except at the upper end portionwhich has a structure corresponding to the aforementioned palm portion 3and the aforementioned back portion 2. Furthermore, the upper endportion of the aforementioned base end is secured in such fashion as tobe joined to the portion at which the aforementioned palm portion 3 andthe aforementioned back portion 2 are joined.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, suitable surface fastener 11 a isprovided at the back face at the tip end portion of tightenable strap10, and suitable surface fastener 11 b which is of such gender as tomate with the aforementioned surface fastener 11 a, is provided at backportion 2. As shown in FIG. 1, tightenable strap 10 is such that theaforementioned respective surface fasteners 11 a, 11 b permit the tipend portion thereof to be removably retained at the aforementioned backportion 2. In addition, the aforementioned tightenable strap 10 isformed in such fashion that neither the radiocarpal joint c nor themidcarpal joint e of the wearer is covered when it is in the retainedstate as shown in FIG. 1. That is, tightenable strap 10 is such thatapproximately half of the thumb sheath portion 4 side of notched portion9 remains uncovered thereby.

Golf glove 1 constituted in this fashion is such that, when worn,tightenable strap 10 is made to assume its unretained state in which itis open such that the entirety of notched portion 9 which is the handinsertion portion is exposed as shown in FIG. 3; and such that,following insertion of the hand thereinto, the aforementionedtightenable strap 10 is such that surface fastener 11 a at the back faceat the tip end thereof is made to be retained by surface fastener 11 bat back portion 2 in such fashion as to permit it to be worn as shown inFIG. 1.

While in this worn state, golf glove 1 is in a state such that, at theback thereof, neither the radiocarpal joint c nor the midcarpal joint eof the wearer is covered by any portion thereof including tightenablestrap 10. Accordingly, with the aforementioned golf glove 1, becausethere is no occurrence of sensation of pressure from the back of theglove to the aforementioned respective joints c, e that carry outflexion and extension and lateral bending of the hand, there being nooccurrence of discomfort when the hand is flexed or extended, or when itis bent to the side, it is possible to easily and definitively achieveexecution of cocking of the wrist and other such movements.

Moreover, the present invention is not limited to the foregoingembodiment; for example, stretchable material in the form of meshmaterial and/or knit material may be used for only a portion ofrespective finger sheaths 4 through 8 and back portion 2. Furthermore,the shape of notched portion 9 is not limited to being triangular, andmay be formed such that the top edge thereof extends not in linear butin curved fashion. Moreover, tightenable strap 10 may be formed suchthat the lower edge thereof extends in curved fashion so as to bedirected from the base end to the tip end. In other words, regardless ofthe shapes of notched portion 9 and tightenable strap 10, it issufficient that they be formed in such fashion that neither theradiocarpal joint c nor the midcarpal joint e of the wearer is covered.Furthermore, it is not necessary that the lower end of the base end atthe aforementioned tightenable strap 10 be secured in such fashion as toalways coincide with the bottom edge of palm portion 3. And the presentinvention may be applied not only to golf gloves but also to gloves forbaseball, motor sports, and the like for which the movement that occursduring flexion and extension or during lateral bending of the hand isperceived to be important.

Because it causes there to be no occurrence of sensation of pressurefrom the back of the glove to the radiocarpal joint, or to the midcarpaljoint that cooperates with the radiocarpal joint to carry out flexionand extension or lateral bending of the hand, there being no occurrenceof discomfort when the hand is flexed or extended, or when it is bent tothe side, the sport glove associated with the present invention providesthe benefit that it makes it possible to easily and definitively achieveexecution of cocking of the wrist and other such movements.

Furthermore, if a constitution is adopted in which the location of thelower end of the palm portion is chosen so as to be more toward themidcarpal joint than the radiocarpal joint of the wearer, such that aportion corresponding to the radiocarpal joint is exposed at the palmand at the back of the hand when the glove is worn, because there willbe absolutely no sensation of pressure on the wrist, the aforementionedbenefit can be still further improved.

Moreover, if a constitution is adopted in which the base end of thetightenable strap is secured in such fashion that the lower end thereofcoincides with the bottom edge of the palm portion, and such that theupper end thereof is secured to the portion at which the palm portionand the back portion are secured, it will be possible to provide thebenefit that the aforementioned respective benefits will be capable ofbeing provided while ensuring that there will be definitive tighteningforce at the tightenable strap.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sport glove comprising: a back portion; a palmportion; a thumb sheath portion; an index finger sheath portion; amiddle finger sheath portion; a ring finger sheath portion; a pinkyfinger sheath portion; and a tightenable strap; wherein a notchedportion that also serves as hand insertion portion is provided at alower portion of the back portion in such fashion as to cover neither aradiocarpal joint nor a midcarpal joint of a wearer; and wherein a tipend portion of the tightenable strap is removably retained at the backportion, and a base end of the tightenable strap is secured to a sideend of the pinky finger sheath portion at the palm portion, in suchfashion that neither the radiocarpal joint nor the midcarpal joint iscovered by the tightenable strap.
 2. The sport glove according to claim1 wherein a location of a lower end of the palm portion is made to bemore toward the midcarpal joint than the radiocarpal joint of thewearer.
 3. The sport glove according to claim 1 wherein the base end ofthe tightenable strap is secured in such fashion that a lower endthereof coincides with a bottom edge of the palm portion, and such thatan upper end thereof is secured to a portion at which the palm portionand the back portion are secured.
 4. The sport glove according to claim2 wherein the base end of the tightenable strap is secured in suchfashion that the lower end thereof coincides with a bottom edge of thepalm portion, and such that an upper end thereof is secured to a portionat which the palm portion and the back portion are secured.